Combination case and display stand



March 15, 1955 14.51., MQORE 2,704,152

COMBINATION CASE: AND DISPLAY STAND Filed April 5. 195o Je? y l l fnvemar l' L. Moare. y 1 MM vm diy? United States Patent O COMBINATION CASE AND DISPLAY STAND Harry L. Moore, Waban, Mass., assignor to Thomas Taylor & Sons, Inc., Hudson, Mass., a corporation of Massachusetts Application April 5, 1950, Serial No. 154,133

1 Claim. (c1. zot-45.14)

This invention relates to a combination case and display stand for articles tor the purpose or advertising and/or sale.

lhe principal objects of the invention are to provide a simple, inexpensively constructed device having component parts which when arranged in one position t'orm a neat, attractive case within which sales samples or articles to be sold may be contained and which when its parts are in another position will altord an ettective display stand tor displaying the articles on a counter or sheir'. Uther objects are to provide a casev which is of substantially unirorm thickness so as to lend itself to stacking in piles and which when opened for display purposes will airord a rigid stable structure and will alrord an extensive area for receiving the manufacturers or distributors name and other advertising data.

As herein illustrated the device comprises a back part of sheet material such as paperboard which has on its forward face one or more forwardly projecting ribs to which may be attached articles for display when the device is open and cover sheets joined to the opposite edges of the back sheet to be folded over the front of the back sheet in overlapping relation to conceal the articles when the device is closed. The covers are joined to the back sheet in such fashion that when folded over the front they occupy a plane parallel to the back and spaced therefrom by a distance greater than the depth ot' the forwardly extending rib and the lower edges of the cover sheets form in conjunction with the lower edge of the back sheet a common broken-line supporting edge for engagement with a supporting surface so as to hold the device erect and in stable equilibrium. Preferably the forwardly extending ribs are of rectangular configuration, being formed by folding the material of the back sheet so as to displace a portion thereof forwardly and regularly recurrent spaced pairs of openings are formed at the bases of the ribs through which fastening means may be passed for securing articles to the ribs in vertically spaced relation.

The invention will now be described in greater detail with reference to the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a plan view of a blank of sheet material prepared for making the combined case and display stand by proper folding thereof;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the device set up with its parts arranged so as to constitute a display stand;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the device with its parts arranged to constitute a case enclosing the articles;

Fig. 4 is a horizontal section taken on the line 4-4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary isometric view of an alternative form of rib which may be formed in the back part; and

Fig. 6 is a fragmentary isometric View of an alternative way of making the rib shown in Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawings the combined case and display stand comprises essentially a back part 10 of sheet material such as paperboard and overlapping cover sheets 12 and 14 arranged to overlie the face of the back sheet and being hinged to its opposite edges at 16 and 18. The back sheet 10 has on its forward face a pair of forwardly extending ribs 20 extending from top to bottom of the sheet to which articles such as samples, advertising products for sale, or articles to be sold may be attached. As illustrated each rib is of substantially rectangular configuration, being formed by bending the material of the back part along pairs of spaced parallel lines 22 and 24 (Fig. 1) the distance between the pair of lines 22 representing the width of the rib and the distance between each pair of lines 22 and 24 representing the depth of the rib. Along the lines 24 which form the base or' the formed rib there are recurrent pairs of vertically spaced holes 26-26 through which a fasten- Y ing element may be passed from the front side of the back part back to the back side and then to the front side again for attaching articles to the rib. ln the illustration or' rig. 2 shoelaces 28 are secured to the rib for display by passing the shoelace itself through the holes 26 in the ribs 2u and then tying them in bows at the front of the ribs. lt is, of course, within the scope of the invention to place the holes 26 at other places, for example through the face of the ribs and to fasten samples thereto with rivets passed through the holes and bent over on the rear side. The disposition of the holes as shown, however, is preferred because the threading of the shoelaces through the holes behind the rib and tying it in front prevents the rib from flattening out. 'l'his would also be true of any fasteners passed through the holes from side to side of the ribs for securing articles thereto.

While the covers 12 and 14 may be separate from the back part 10, as illustrated in Pig. l, they form integral extensions thereof at opposite edges and are divided therefrom for folding over onto the front face by spaced parallel fold lines 30--30, the distance between the lines 30-30 being greater than the depth of the ribs 2i) so that when the covers 12 and 14 are folded into overlapping engagement over the face of the back part they will lie in a plane parallel to the back part which is spaced forwardly thereof by a distance greater than the depth of the ribs and hence afford room for the articles attached thereto without crushing the same if they are of a fragile nature or if they are of a rigid character to afford space therefor without causing buckling of the covers.

The lower edges 32 of the covers as illustrated form, in conjunction with the lower edge 34 of the back part, a broken-line supporting edge for contact with a supporting surface so that when the covers are disposed at angles to the back part these edges constitute a stable footing for the structure.

While the forwardly extending ribs 20 have been shown as being of rectangular configuration, it is evident that in an alternative form the n'bs might be of triangular configuration as shown in Fig. 5 wherein the material of the back part is folded along three spaced parallel lines 36-36 and 38, the latter being mid-way between the former. It is also evident (Fig. 6) that either ribs of rectangular or triangular cross section could be formed on the front face of the back part by applying thereto properly folded separate strips 40 by means of adhesive or staples. This latter construction however is somewhat more expensive to manufacture and hence less desirable from the standpoint of cost. The form of the invention illustrated in Figs. l to 4 is preferred since the blank for making it may be died out of sheet material as a single operation, rapidly and economically.

Both the inner and outer surfaces of the covers afford ample space for the manufacturers or distributors name or other identifying indicia as well as for advertising legends.

It is evident from the foregoing description that a very simple, durable and highly useful device for containing and displaying articles for advertising purposes or for sale is afforded.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A combination case and support comprising a back sheet having a front face, a pair of transversely spaced vertically extending ribs projecting forwardly from the front face of the back sheet, said ribs being continuous from top to bottom and being formed by folding the substance of the back along at least two pairs of four spaced parallel lines, the two inner lines of each pair representing the breadth of the ribs and the spaces between the inner and outer lines representing the depth of the ribs, each rib having recurrent spaced pairs of transversely arranged holes at each side thereof distributed along the fold lines at the junction of the rib with the back so as to be located at the back corners of the rib, a plurality of exible elongated articles threaded through pairs of said transversely spaced holes, each article being threaded from thel front of the back, thence behind the back and then to the front again, and then having its ends securely tied across the front of the rib, thereby displaying the article and resisting spreading of the rib, and cover sheets joined at the lateral edges of the back sheet for folding over the front ot the back sheet in overlapping arrangement, said cover sheets constituting integral extensions of the back sheet being hinged thereto by spaced parallel fold lines the spaces between the latter being greater than the spaces between said inner and outer lines which constitute the depth of the ribs so that each cover sheet is spaced forwardly of the back sheet by the distance between the fold lines on which the cover sheets hinge, which distance is greater than the depth of the ribs, one of said cover Sheets being subtantially coextensive in area with the back sheet so as to overlie the entire front face of the cover sheets, lower ends of the ribs and back sheet having a common lower edge for engagement with a supporting surface when the covers are disposed angularly with respect to the back to hold the device upright.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 204,465 Waite `lune 4, 1878 615,702 Hills Dec. 13, 1898 689,667 Blakeslee Dec. 24, 1901 1,226,231 Mack May 15, 1917 1,544,718 Boden July 7, 1925 1,581,422 Bergen Apr. 20, 1926 1,896,678 Myers Feb. 7, 1933 1,955,252 Palla Apr. 17, 1934 2,007,088 Jones July 2, 1935 2,025,522 Myers Dec. 24, 1935 2,087,259 Mortenson July 20, 1937 2,166,766 Owens July 18, 1939 2,259,772 Owens Oct. 21, 1941 2,472,532 Hellman June 7, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS 2,958 Great Britain of 1884 

